


Hoping for Good Weather

by Disasterkyoshi



Series: Early Days [2]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: F/F, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Friendship/Love, Slow Burn, the slowest of burns
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-18
Updated: 2020-07-22
Packaged: 2021-03-05 08:00:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,224
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25347346
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Disasterkyoshi/pseuds/Disasterkyoshi
Summary: Rangi, Yun, Jianzhu, and Hei-Ran head on a trip to examine the threat of a volcano eruption. Rangi starts becoming aware of how much she's missing out on being the avatar's guard.
Relationships: Kyoshi/Rangi (Avatar)
Series: Early Days [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1826665
Comments: 24
Kudos: 143





	1. Good Morning

It was a common occurrence to be awake early, but before sunrise, Rangi thought, was just excessive. Even if it was to visit a volcano whose tremors were alarming the local villagers, what good would early morning do? _If we were really concerned_ , Rangi thought, disgruntled as she drowsily suited herself in her Fire Nation armor, _we would be camping out there_. Yun had yet to firebend, but his earthbending was so powerful that Jianzhu believed the trip would be a success no matter what. Jianzhu had hopes that, if Yun couldn’t firebend at the end of this journey, maybe he could lavabend. While rare, Jianzhu hoped that maybe it could create a bridge between earth and fire for Yun to make the transition easier.

A gentle knock at the door disrupted Rangi’s ranting thoughts. Her mood instantly improved, if only a small amount, by the sight of Kyoshi. It provided as a small reminder that, as early as she had to wake up, several of the maids and kitchen staff had to be up even earlier.

“Is your face just like that, or do you really hate waking up early?” Kyoshi teased lightheartedly.

“Oh stop.” Rangi laughed. “We can’t all be graced with the precious gift of being morning people.” She stepped aside from the doorway, inviting Kyoshi into her room. She noticed that Kyoshi was carrying a small tray.

“It’s a good thing I come bearing gifts.” Kyoshi said as she placed the tray down to reveal a small, double stacked wicker box and two cups of a bright green tea. “The box is for you to take. It has a few dumplings, steamed tofu, and I snuck in a couple moon peaches.” Kyoshi paused for a moment. “And I figured I could spare a few minutes to have some tea with you, if you would like.”

“So, you’re slacking today.” Rangi now had her chance to tease. Nothing but the slight smirk she made as she met Kyoshi’s gaze gave away her banter.

“I would never!” Kyoshi feigned offense at the statement, placing a hand on her chest as she let out an exasperated gasp. She paused for a moment before apologetically adding, “I actually had dropped off the meals and tea with Jianzhu, your mother, and Yun already. Jianzhu wanted some time with Yun before heading out, so I figured we could spend some time together.”

“I would like nothing more.” Rangi said as she set a small blanket out on the floor, followed by two cushions. The olive-green tones of the fabric almost perfectly matched Kyoshi’s uniform. Rangi wondered if, at one point, they had been cut from the same cloth.

Rangi started to kneel onto her cushion as Kyoshi passed along her cup of tea. She held her cup with both hands cradling around the base, embracing the heat emitted from the ceramic. The sweet, herbal scent met her nose a few short moments before the dark green tea met her lips. She felt a rush of relief flow through her body at the first sip, both calming and energizing her almost instantly.

Rangi looked back at her friend sitting across from her. Kyoshi was slowly swirling the cup in her hand, smiling slightly. Rangi took a moment to admire the deep brown freckles spread across her nose and cheeks. She took another sip of her tea, admiring just how peaceful this moment felt before Kyoshi would meet her gaze. Sometimes, Rangi thought, it would be nice to escape her duties and make days out of moments like these.

The two girls sat and drank their tea together, mostly in silence, until it was time for Rangi’s departure. She folded up her cloth blanket and neatly placed her two cushions on top. Kyoshi was already gone by the time Rangi had turned back around. She sighed, gathered her food, and headed on her way to meet Yun, Jianzhu, and her mother by the mansion’s entrance.

Rangi quickly realized why the urgency to get to this volcano was so minimal. When she had arrived at the front gates where her mother, the avatar, and Jianzhu stood, she was surprised to see that Kelsang’s flying bison, Pengpeng, would not be accompanying them.

“The volcano,” Jianzhu announced theatrically, “is right there.” He pointed upward and eastward. Rangi followed his finger to a flattened mountain peak along the range directly beside them. Rangi wanted to groan, but Yun had beaten her to it.

“Sifu please.” Yun playfully complained. “It’s not even sunrise, and you want us to walk that entire way?”

“Not just walk,” Jianzhu’s face lit up with a maniacal smile, “the top gets steep. We’re going to need to climb the last third of the way.”

“You’re kidding me!” Yun’s persistent complaints were starting to sound a little more serious. “Not even earthbending that last part?”

“Now, avatar, you know Hei-Ran and Rangi here are not earthbenders. Besides, Hei-Ran has probably had to make far worse treks on foot than this.” Jianzhu glanced at Hei-Ran with a sly smile, nodding his head slightly.

“Oh, certainly.” Hei-Ran played into Jianzhu’s taunts, “and Rangi here also needs to get more training in with such tasks.” Hei-Ran reached across Rangi, placing one hand on either shoulder. Although unintentional, Rangi’s expression gave away her feelings of absolute disgust. Hei-Ran bellowed with laughter, grasping her hand over her stomach. Her laugh was so boisterous and unexpected that it even caught Jianzhu off guard. Soon enough, he and Yun had also joined in on Hei-Ran’s laughter.

“I haven’t seen that look since you were a little girl.” Hei-Ran managed to get out after a few minutes of uninterrupted laughter. “Yun, you may not have signed up for being the avatar, but Rangi, dear, you did. This is exactly what you signed up for!” Rangi couldn’t help but smile at the sight of her mother so uncharacteristically giddy. It was hard enough to try and make her smile, let alone laugh. It made her more excited for their long day. She only wished Kyoshi could join them. Rangi shook the thought out of her head before it could settle down and become the only thing she could think about.

The group started on their journey up the mountain range, making their ascent as they walked toward base of the volcano. Jianzhu lead the group with Yun right next to him. He spent the majority of the walk speaking directly with Yun, occasionally adding Hei-Ran into the conversation. As far as Rangi was concerned, she was merely a formality, the muscle protecting the avatar. She felt she was unnecessary, as she knew her mother and Jianzhu were more than enough to keep Yun protected in the case that something more serious arose. However, her mother was right in saying this was good training for her. Someday, she and Jianzhu wouldn’t be there to get Yun out of trouble before they even got into it. She would need to know what to do when those days came.

Rangi appreciated being in the background on this trip. She liked being able to let her mind wander while she followed Jianzhu. As much as she didn’t want to admit it, she really appreciated staying silent on this commute to continue waking up. Physically, her eyes may be open, and her legs may be moving up the mountains, but mentally, she was still sitting on her tea cushion in her room, looking back at the tall girl playing with her cup of tea.

“It’s hard to get up before dawn.” Her mother’s blunt, yet also warm, voice broke her concentration on the image in her mind. Rangi blinked and looked up at her mother, who had fallen back next to her. “You look like you’re still trying to wake up.” Hei-Ran smiled.

“Honestly, I just wish I could’ve had another cup of tea before heading out.” Rangi responded, sounding groggier than she expected.

“Trust me,” Hei-Ran said, “you’ll be glad you didn’t. Not when you’re out for so long.”

Rangi sighed and looked at her surroundings, analyzing the trees for any blemish in camouflage, something she knew she didn’t necessarily need to do.

“What’s on your mind?” Hei-Ran asked. Her mother’s concern was always easy to hear.

“I just,” Rangi searched for the right words, “I wish, sometimes, that I could spend days like this with friends.”

“Oh, are Jianzhu, Yun, and I not your friends?” Hei-Ran teased. Rangi smiled, still keeping her gaze from her mother.

“You know what I mean.” She paused. “I just wish that these trips– getting up before sunrise for long hikes up mountains, days where we’re out in other towns until well past dusk– I wish that some of them didn’t have to be just for training.” Rangi could feel her mother staring a hole through her. She could tell there was no anger there. She knew her mother just cared.

“Do you miss your friends back at the academy?” Hei-Ran asked. “You know, if you don’t feel ready for this kind of commitment, we can always–”

“No.” Rangi didn’t let her mother finish, not even wanting to contemplate the idea. “I mean, no, I don’t feel like I have too much of a commitment. This is my honor, and I couldn’t be more sure that I’m exactly where I need to be. It’s just…hard. I don’t know. Did you ever have times when you were serving for Kuruk where you could just go off with friends?”

“Oh. Well,” Hei-Ran thought for a moment, “You know Kuruk was a bit more…relaxed than most others would be, and we all know how that ended.”

Rangi’s own sigh was drowned out by Hei-Ran’s. _We all know how that ended_. Her mother’s last statement rung in her head. That’s why Rangi is here. That’s why she became a guard. _Because we all know how that ended_.


	2. The Crater

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rangi finds that the volcano's top is not what she expected.

The last portion of traveling up the volcano was exhausting. Danger wasn’t necessarily a worry, as Jianzhu and Yun surely were capable of keeping Rani and Hei-Ran safe with their earthbending. The vertical inclines required the group to climb, which provided Rangi with a strong answer as to why they didn’t leave later in the day. 

The exposed rock on this particular volcano was as a solid, void black. Whether it was from ash, or natural, she couldn’t tell, but nevertheless, the early morning sun had already started to heat the stone. Climbing the cliffs to the top felt like she was stuck in a vent, hot air sitting stagnant all around her. It felt inescapable. 

However, once they got to the top, Rangi was amazed to see the lush, green haven that resided on top. Everything there felt like seeing what resided near its base, only minimized. Especially the trees, which at the base of the mountains towered above them like spirits watching overhead, now appeared like shrubs, barely grew above Jianzhu in height, but their trunks remained as thick as those seen below. The clouds above them barely hovered out of reach. The soil, too, was a deep onyx black and sunk softly with each step Rangi took. She felt as if she had entered the spirit world. 

“The opening is over here.” Jianzhu said, breaking the stunned silence that had taken over the rest of the group. They all collectively followed him over the flat top, until Jianzhu stopped. Rangi could see he was standing over what looked like the entrance to a lake with no water. However, as she got closer, she saw the bright fiery red lava boiling within the crater. She could feel the heat blasting out of this spot, even as far back as she was. 

“Right, then.” Jianzhu said as the group met by him. “First, we need to assess how ready this thing is to erupt. If we’re not about to get blown up with the mountain, we can eat before training.” The group nodded in agreement. “Alright, Yun and Rangi, you two walk the perimeter eastward. Hei-Ran and I will approach from the west.” 

Rangi and Yun bowed to their elders and headed on their way around the crater. When they had gotten out of earshot with Jianzhu and Hei-Ran, Yun smiled as he glanced over at Rangi. Without the presence of Yun’s teachers, he became a kid again, free to talk and joke with Rangi on their walk along the perimeter, free from the need to keep his composure like the avatar should. Sometimes Rangi needed to remind him that they were, in fact, on a mission, and that he needed to treat it as such, but it was nice to be with someone who also just wanted to treat this as just two friends walking together. 

Aside from a few spots where Yun needed to earthbend a path to walk along, the volcano’s rim was relatively wide. The sides were so smooth, they almost looked sanded down. The paths were flat, easy to look across. It was perfect, Rangi thought, for keeping guard of the young avatar with his teachers. 

They met Jianzhu and Hei-Ran halfway and stopped. 

“Alright, what’s the damage eastward?” Jianzhu asked. 

Rangi started talking before Yun, giving a thorough layout of the east side of the mountain, all the way down to the base and what if overlooked. 

“Yun, based on Rangi’s description, would you say it’s safe to practice towards the east?” Jianzhu pointed his question towards Yun, a training technique he had implemented for Yun to improve his planning skills. 

Yun stood silent, staring blankly at Jianzhu for a moment. “I don’t know what the west side holds.” 

Jianzhu smiled. “Good answer,” he said before he and Hei-Ran described what resided westward.

They decided the best plan of action would be to hit from the north end, using defensive techniques to prevent spread on either side of the mountain. Minimal damage, as Jianzhu emphasized, even if there’s nothing of concern to protect. 

After eating, Yun and his teachers stayed at the north peak, and Rangi continued on her path. While she didn’t feel there was much urgency in guarding, she diligently surveyed the volcano, watching for any signs of threat. When she arrived back at the start, near the oasis of lush wildlife, she decided to continue through the small forest before heading back to the volcano again. If any danger lurked, it would be in the safety of the woods. Also, Rangi needed a break from the insurmountable heat emitted from the crater. Even a firebender needs to cool off sometimes. 

Rangi decided to start inward and move out toward the perimeter, walking from one end to the other in a zigzag. She wanted to prolong being away from the vent of lava for as long as possible. 

While nearing the perimeter, Rangi noticed something…different, almost glimmering, by the cliffside. She squinted, trying to make out what the small white and black object was protruding from the ground. There’s no way, she thought, it couldn’t be. 

Every step towards this mysterious object made Rangi’s heart race faster. It would make sense, she tried reasoning with herself, they are only found on volcanoes. However, she knew that even then, the chance of finding one was almost impossible. Almost. 

And yet, there it was. A panda lily was in her presence. Rangi knelt down in front of it, examining, admiring, the flower’s black and white petals. She never expected just how pristine the white looked. It was untouched, glimmering in the light of the sun. It was the most beautiful flower she had ever laid her eyes on, more beautiful than the fire lily. Its solitary stance on this cliffside where Rangi stood, it was a gem. 

Rangi thought of Kyoshi. 

Her image lingered in Rangi’s mind. She thought about how Kyoshi had probably never seen a Panda Lily before, either. Surely, soon enough, suitors for Yun would be flooding in, girls from royal families all across the Earth Kingdom, with these Panda Lilies. It would be Kyoshi’s job to prepare them for gifting to Yun. It only seemed fair that Rangi take this one for her, if only to teach her the importance of these flowers before they started flooding in. 

In a haste, as if she were going to be caught doing something she absolutely shouldn’t be doing, Rangi pulled out the small wicker box that held her meal and placed the lily inside. In one swift motion, the box was back in her bag, and she was on her feet, walking quickly back to the crater. 

Rangi noticed she hadn’t taken a breath since leaving the site of picking the Panda Lily. With a deep sigh, she relaxed her lungs. There was no need for her to be so anxious over picking a flower for her friend. It was fine, the kept telling herself. She was just showing her friend a flower that has important significance. It’s for teaching Kyoshi the level of importance these flowers hold. It’s important for her gifting duties. Kyoshi needed to learn before tasked with managing these flowers. 

Rangi continued to think of more justifications as she continued walking the perimeter of the volcano, as if she were the one who needed convincing that what she was doing wasn’t wrong. Kyoshi’s tea was starting to hit; Rangi convinced herself that was why her heart felt like it was racing and why her breathing felt so shallow. She now understood why her mother stated that it’s better that she only had one cup. She made a mental note to scold Kyoshi for how strong she made the tea. The effect it had on her breathing would put everyone at risk, since her breathing is highly reflective of her bending. They’re all lucky no threats met them at the mountain, Rangi thought. It could have ended very poorly otherwise. 

Yun managed to stop the volcano’s threats fairly quickly. The sun hadn’t even reached halfway to its peak by the time they had finished their objective. Jianzhu’s pride in Yun was beaming from his face as Rangi met them back at the base of the crater. Hei-Ran, too, looked extremely satisfied with the day’s events. Needing an escape from any attention on her, Rangi listened to every detail described of Yun’s complete mastery of the volcano while they descended the volcano.


	3. The Descent

Listening to Jianzhu and Yun beam over their successful day provided enough distraction for Rangi to keep her mind off of the flower that burned a spot in the back of her mind. However, once the climb down from the peak had finished and the group was back on easy-to-tread ground, Rangi once again felt its overwhelming presence sitting in the small box in her bag. She felt as though it was staring a hole through her. She was wrong, of course. It was just Hei-Ran watching from a distance, waiting for the right moment to strike. 

“What did you do?” Her mother’s low, harsh voice broke her concentration.

“What?” Rangi shot her head, followed by the rest of her body, right around to see her mother smirking. “Ugh, mom, you can’t just do that! I’m trying to keep the avatar safe!”

Hei-Ran laughed. “Oh, yeah, some surveillance you’re doing with your face practically buried in your bag.” Rangi didn’t realize how inattentive she had been behaving. “I’ve had to pick up the slack back here, watching you _and_ the trees.” Rangi could feel her face going red. Her cheeks felt hot, and the more she tried to suppress it, the worse it felt.

“I just…” Rangi searched for a good excuse, “I have one more moon peach, and I can’t decide whether to eat it or not.”

“Mhm,” Hei-Ran hummed, unconvinced, but smirking still. She started to walk ahead towards the rest of the group. Rangi sighed with relief. She was back at the end of the group, exactly where she wanted to be, and exactly where she stayed for the rest of the descent.

Upon arriving at the mansion, Rangi immediately set out to find Kyoshi.

“I can take the meal boxes to the kitchen.” Rangi offered her bag to the rest of her group. They promptly placed their wicker boxes inside.

Rangi walked one of the least efficient routes to the kitchen, something she did enough for people to believe it was her militant training, but, in fact, was more because Kyoshi was often found along this path. Unfortunately, this day was not one of those times. Rangi had made it into the kitchen without any sight of Kyoshi.

Auntie Mui was bent over the charcoal pit by the back. A golden-brown lump of meat was rotating around on a spit. The sweet and smoky scents of apple and coal made Rangi pause for a moment, inhaling the decadent aroma as if it would be the last breath she took. She made her way across the kitchen, eyes locked on Auntie Mui.

“Auntie Mui,” Rangi greeted, straightening her posture. Auntie Mui raised from her slump over the coals to meet Rangi’s address. She appeared perplexed, unsure whether she was in trouble with the young guard.

“Yes dear?”

“I’m looking for Kyoshi.” Rangi said, “I have some things to discuss with her.” Her eyes darted to her bag. “I also have a few meal boxes from the trip today.”   
  


“Oh, yes.” Auntie Mui’s gaze relaxed. She offered her hands out for Rangi to place the boxes, of which she placed only the top three. “I’ll get these cleaned right away. As for Kyoshi, I do believe she’s still on cleaning duty before tonight’s engagement with the Beifongs. After she’s finished, she has the night off.” Rangi bowed and thanked Auntie Mui before heading off.

Rangi knew without hesitation that the Beifongs would require the largest and most luxurious room in the mansion. Regardless of how impeccable the estate was in appearance, Jianzhu’s choice of Yokoya as grounds to train the avatar was found to be extremely controversial among his outreach of colleagues. He needed to make it apparent to them, but above all else, Lu Beifong, that while they were located in Yokoya, their prestige was unhindered. There was only one room in the house that could possibly fit the quota of what the Beifongs expected.

The room was an overwhelming deep emerald green that starkly cut into gold trim along the cutoff of the floor. The brown marble flooring was tactfully chosen to both emphasize the Earth Kingdom’s colors while also emphasizing their wealth with their choice of marble. And there, in the middle of the room, which felt like it was made to match her, Kyoshi stood sweeping the floor. Her long, dark hair was tied back higher and tighter than usual.

Kyoshi’s back was turned to Rangi when she had first entered, but somehow, she still had known the firebender was there.

“Are you just going to stand there, or do you have something urgent you need to scold me for?” Kyoshi said coolly as she peered over her shoulder. Rangi bit the inside of her cheek as she smiled.

“Yeah, actually.” Rangi said as she walked towards Kyoshi. “I know your tea was strong this morning, but it was–” she stopped at the sight of Kyoshi’s busted up lip and chin. Her smile faded as she was able to make out more of the injury. She already knew the cause, but she wanted to give Kyoshi the chance to tell her first. “What happened?”

“I fell at the market.” Kyoshi diverted her gaze back down, continuing to sweep the already pristine floor.

“You expect me to believe that?” Rangi moved herself directly in front of Kyoshi’s line of vision, blocking her from looking at anything else.

“I mean, I _did_ fall.” Kyoshi argued, half-jokingly. She rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly as she let out a nervous chuckle. “You should see the other guy.”   
  


“No. You don’t get to do that.” Rangi grabbed Kyoshi by the forearm. “You don’t get to take this kind of torment by a couple of meaningless farming children.” She was all but steaming from her ears.

Kyoshi remained silent for the longest time, avoiding Rangi’s gaze like a child getting scolded for stealing a cookie.

“I mean, they have a lot of say in who their parents sell to. If those farms don’t like us, then who will we buy our food from? We can’t let the avatar starve.”   
  


“Kyoshi, I swear.” Rangi’s anger welling up inside was pouring out of her body. She pinched the bridge of her nose. “You know as well as I do that there are more farms in the Earth Kingdom than the, what, three farms here in Yokoya. If you standing up for yourself means we can’t buy food from them then so be it. They’re lousy farmers to begin with if that’s the case.”

“It’s really not as bad as it looks.” Kyoshi defended. Rangi glared back at the already-darkening bruise around the base of her chin. She raised an eyebrow.

“Your lip is still bleeding.” Rangi said in a monotone voice. Kyoshi rushed to wipe off her lip, but Rangi grabbed her hand gently. “Come on, let’s get you cleaned up properly, you oaf.” She could hear Kyoshi sigh. “And do _not_ try to tell me that you still have work to do. Auntie Mui already told me you were done after cleaning, and this room is pristine.”

Rangi led Kyoshi to her bedroom, making her sit on her bed while she unfolded her cloth and placed the two cushions on top. After getting Kyoshi seated, Rangi ran back out the door to grab a bowl of water and a rag.

“Don’t move.” Rangi said sternly before turning out the door. She was all but running down the corridor to get what she needed. Sneaking into the kitchen, she swept through without a single person noticing she had even been in there. The water wasn’t as warm as she would have liked, and the only bowl she could find was wooden. It wasn’t ideal, but it would have to do in a hurry. It wouldn’t have been the first time Kyoshi ran off as Rangi went to collect what was needed to clean her wounds.

As Rangi rounded the corner to her room, she felt the anxiety creep in on her again. A sinking feeling settled in the pit of her stomach at the image of nobody sitting on the cushion she had so thoughtfully splayed out.

A flood of relief met Rangi when she saw that Kyoshi had stayed put. She smiled and walked to where Kyoshi was seated. A quick breath, and Rangi dabbed the rag with the water before lightly patting it down on Kyoshi’s face. Kyoshi flinched at the initial shock of the cold water.

“I know, but I didn’t have time to heat it up. Thanks to your _tendency_ to wander off, I was sort of in a rush.” Rangi said, sounding a bit harsher than she’d intended.

“I’m really okay.” Kyoshi tried to defend herself again.

“Is it so hard to just stand up for yourself?” Rangi’s question sounded pleading, abrupt. “You can literally lift Master Kelsang with one arm, and you’re afraid to stand up to these kids.”

“It’s more complicated than that.” Kyoshi paused. “Besides, I didn’t really see this coming. I was just buying some food at the market when I was tripped out of nowhere. I didn’t even realize they had done it until I saw them running away and laughing.”

“Did you see Auntie Mui after your…fall?” Rangi asked. She moved towards Kyoshi’s lip. Something about focusing in on her lips made Rangi’s breath catch for a moment.

“I mean, _I_ saw her, but she didn’t necessarily see me.” Kyoshi’s voice trailed. “You know she isn’t the biggest fan of blemishes on our faces. You should hear her about my freckles.” Kyoshi’s eyes wandered around the room, not entirely sure where she should place her gaze as the young firebender tended to her wounds.

Rangi sighed, focusing in on the scrapes around Kyoshi’s lips. It was so foreign to her that some people believed freckles were _undesirable._ She found them so easy to be drawn in by. They were inviting, soft. Her breath caught again as she finished the last dab on Kyoshi’s bottom lip.

“Alright, then.” Rangi cleared her throat. “You’re all done.” She stood up and picked up the bowl of water.

Kyoshi started to rise when Rangi remembered the wicker box in her bag, sitting on her bed in the corner of the room.

“I, uh, I got you something today.” Rangi stammered awkwardly. Kyoshi looked at her, confused. “Have you heard of Panda Lilies?” Rangi walked to the bed, opening her bag and the box.

“Only in passing,” Kyoshi said. “What are they?”

“Well, you see, they’re, um,” Rangi could feel her cheeks burning as she struggled to find the right words. Her breath quickened as she kept her gaze down on the flower in the box. “They’re a rare flower, found only on volcanoes, and even then, they’re almost impossible to find.” She started to pick up the flower, her heart racing as she continued on. “It’s one of the most romantic gestures you can do for someone, giving them one of these flowers.” She was walking over to Kyoshi, flower in hand, panicking with every step she took closer to her. She couldn’t bring herself to look up at Kyoshi’s face as she held the flower out for her. “So, yeah, I kind of found one today on the volcano, and I thought it would be a good teaching experience for you to learn how to handle these if anyone presents one for Yun.”

“Which is how, exactly?” Kyoshi asked, taking the flower out of Rangi’s hand. Rangi’s face went hot, to the point where she could feel her ears burning. She kept her gaze down, avoiding Kyoshi’s eyes with all her effort.   
  


“I’m…not entirely sure.” Rangi said, feeling an overwhelming heat boiling up to her face. “But at least now you know what they look like. You’ll know the significance they hold when someone presents one for Yun.”

Kyoshi hummed in agreement.

“It’s beautiful.” Rangi’s head shot up to see Kyoshi holding the flower closer to her face, beaming down at the black and white petals. She twirled the stem between her fingers, rotating the flower.

“Yeah, breathtaking, really.” Rangi said, watching her friend’s eyes beam down on the flower. “Well, you better go figure out how to handle those guys then.” She grabbed Kyoshi by either arm, spinning her around and out the door. “Bye!” Rangi smiled and waved, rushing to close the door.

Rangi turned around. She leaned back against the door and slid down until she was sitting on the floor. She cupped her face in her hands, elbows resting against her knees. She sighed, her breath so heavy, it felt like she’d just released all the air that had gotten trapped in her lungs since she’d found the flower. It was over. The flower was gone. Nothing but the memory of Kyoshi sitting on the floor of her room remained.

She was breathtaking. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for reading!! This chapter is a bit longer, sorry about that!! I really wanted to show Rangi's perspective a bit more bc i feel like she was probably aware of her feelings a lot sooner than Kyoshi was

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading!! This wasn't meant to be as long as it ended up being, so I decided to split it up into a few chapters :) I'm so sorry for the slowest of burns but I PROMISE I'm getting there.  
> also i had no clue what to title this piece so i just named it with a lyric from a song i was listening to


End file.
